1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to tactile plate assemblies used in walkways to alert pedestrians, including those with vision disabilities, of an upcoming intersection or other potentially dangerous area. The present invention also relates to brackets used to secure the individual tactile plates of a tactile plate assembly to the underlying substrate as well as to each other.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
As is known to those skilled in the art, intersections between walkways and streets, railway crossings, etc. can present potential hazards. Awareness of impeding traffic is very important for a pedestrian attempting to walk across or otherwise traverse such an area. Also, pedestrians who are hearing and/or vision impaired may not be aware of traditional safety warning devices such as crosswalk lights, painted markers, signs, or audible tones. Thus, a previously-recognized problem has been alerting such pedestrians that they are approaching intersections where automobiles, trains, or other hazards may be present.
Tactile plate assemblies sometimes are employed to address this problem. Tactile plate assemblies generally include a plurality of spaced projections and/or indentations that impart a texture to the walkway for providing a different feel to the walking surface as compared to the surrounding smooth walkway (e.g., sidewalks, etc.). The texture can be felt underfoot or perceived as bumpiness to a feeler cane or through the wheels of a wheelchair as it traverses the surface.
Tactile plate assemblies typically are formed from two or more subassemblies that are disposed next to one another. For example, two 2′×2′ (0.3 m×0.6 m) subassemblies may be placed end-to-end to provide a 4′×2′ (1.2 m×0.6 m) assembly. Multiple subassemblies are employed rather than a single larger assembly to maintain the aggregate weight that must be handled at any given time at a manageable level and to negate the need to cast large, thick plates. Such subassemblies typically are not interconnected and, thus, may become misaligned with one another either during installation or after.
In addition, traditional asphalt construction requires hot asphalt to be compressed with the use of weighted rollers or other compacting tamping devices. Prior tactile plate assemblies could not be used in conjunction with asphalt as they tend to move out of position and/or bend when the asphalt is compressed.
What is needed therefore is a warning device that effectively alerts pedestrians of potential hazards in the vicinity of walkway intersections. Also what is needed is a device to allow the warning device to be effectively set in curing concrete as well as asphalt. A manner to interconnect multiple warning devices to one another, allowing economical installation, increased stability, and increased rigidity in soft asphalt, is also needed. Heretofore, these requirements have not been fully met without incurring various disadvantages.
One previously recognized approach in an attempt to address one or more of the above-identified needs, involves connecting a safety flooring matrix to an underlying anchor box as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,718,714. Another approach in addressing one or more of these needs is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,845,122, which incorporates a tile that is connected to underlying flanges for distributing air pockets when the tile is placed on the ground.
These previous attempts remain deficient in addressing the issue of installing a warning device into curing asphalt as well as allowing an installer to effectively connect multiple warning devices to one another in an efficient manner.